Wheatus - 'Teenage Dritbag' music video analysis.

How does this music video follow an archetypal Todorovian narrative?

Tzetvan Todorov is a French-Bulgarian philosopher and scholar who notably constructed his theory of narrative. Todorov argued that every narrative follows a 3 act structure that features a problem (disequilibrium),  a struggle to resolve this problem, and a solution (equilibrium). It can be argued that if a media text has a conventional narrative, it will follow Todorov's narrative structure. The music video for Wheatus' Teenage Dirtbag also follows this structure.

We begin with act one that lasts from around 0:06 - 1:12 and helps establish the characters and the general plot of the music video. We quickly learn that he is in love with a girl called Noelle and that he often gets teased and bullied by fellow students. The "inciting incident" that disturbs the balance occurs quite quickly following the brief introductory and establishing shots seen at the start of the music video. As he is locking up his bike, it gets ran over by a car (A). This disturbs the equilibrium (even if it was brief) and begins the montage of the boy getting badly treated at school. During act 2, from 1:12 - 2:26, the narrative continues the disequilibrium as the main character continues to get bullied by students,  he gets knocked over (B) and things thrown at him (C) etc. Just towards the end of Act 2, the struggle to 'get the girl' begins to get resolved as Noelle appears disgusted and her boyfriend throwing rubbish at the male character. This scene, in conjunction with the entirety of act 3 (2:26 - 3:59), resolves the problem and restores equilibrium as he eventually wins over Noelle. She presents "two tickets to iron Maiden" and he then dances with her at the prom night (D). This music video very closely follows a Todorovian narrative as it features a clear 3 act structure featuring the typical aspects of disturbance, struggle and resolution.

How does this music video us Barthes' Proairetic Code

Roland Barthes proairetic code refers to an action/ event that causes the audience to seek closure. The audience also anticipate the resolution/ closure to the issue this action caused. The music video for Teenage Dirtbag very interestingly uses clips from Loser (2000) (E).  This film is a very typical american teen comedy film set in a high school. It features a male character, labelled as a 'loser', who is love with a girl but because of his reputation around school and the treatment he receives from students and teachers, the feeling isn't mutual. However, in the end she falls in love with him. We've seen it all before and it is a plot we are all very familiar with. With this in mind, the use of this plot line and footage from 'Loser' creates a very strong proairetic code. Following Act 1, the audience confidently anticipate what will happen later on and accurately predict he will get the girl and no longer be a 'loser.' This is definitely the case in the video for Teenage Dirtbag as the typical clichéd american high school narrative is closely followed, like the audience would expect.

(E)

How does this music video use narrative devices?

• Conflict/ Binary Opposition

The narrative of this music video very heavily features binary opposition between the male character and almost every other student. There are several shots that the directors have used in order to construct conflict between the male character and other students, including Noelle and her boyfriend. For example, at 0:51, he's walking down the stairs whist everyone around him, on his side, is walking up (F). This creates a sense that he doesn't fit in with the crowd and is segregated from everyone else. In this instance, this film making technique is used to create a sense of difference, opposition and that the male character doesn't fit in with the mainstream. This technique was iconically used in the opening to Tarantino's 1997 Thriller 'Jackie Brown'. In the opening  of this film, the character of Jackie Brown is walking through an airport corridor. During this entire sequence, she is walking in one direction whilst every other person walks the other way (G). Tarantino used this technique differently to the director of Teenage Dirtbag to create a sense of independence and introduce Brown's character as proud and one that goes against the grain confidently. In Teenage Dirtbag, when the male character physically goes against the crowd, we get a sense of conflict and that he isn't part of the general mainstream group.

Binary opposition is also used in this music video through the frequent use of shot-reverse-shot. This technique is used throughout the corridor scene from 1:12 - 1:36 (H). The director cuts from the male character to POV shots of other students walking past pulling a 'loser' sign at him. It is also used towards the end of the scene between Noelle and the male character. The use of shot reverse shot creates a sense of binary opposition between the male character and fellow students, noelle and her boyfriend. There are literal divisions between the male character and everyone else, as the director keeps cutting between them, creating separation and a sense of conflict.

• Ellipsis

In literary terms, an ellipsis refers to a '...' in a text that is often used to create a cliff hanger or portray a pause in dialogue. In film making, including music videos, an ellipsis refers to a transition where its clear time has passed and the audience 'fill in the gaps' and figure out what's happened. The music video for Teenage Dirtbag uses an ellipsis at 2:25 to transition to the 'prom night' (I). The directors used a dip to black to construct an ellipsis here. This gap in time, through the ellipsis, provides a quick way to move the narrative on to the prom night in order for the video to fit the lyrics.  In addition, this gives the audience the impression that nothing has changed and the male character still gets teased and labelled as a 'loser'. Furthermore, the cliched nature of prom nights in films provide the audience with a development of the proairetic code of the video. We expect that prom night is the night where he can finally 'get the girl' and resolve the disequilibrium. The use of ellipsis in this video provides a useful method of progressing the narrative on and linking the visuals on the screen to the lyrics in the track (one of Goodwin's conventions of music videos).

• Dream Sequence/ Hypodiegesis.

This music video interestingly experiments with narrative structure as it features a conventional liner pattern embedded in a more cyclical overall plot. The first and last shots of the music video are the boy asleep on the stairs, revealing that the whole video was a dream and in fact he didn't 'get the girl' and resolve the disequilibrium (J).  The linear narrative featured in this video, like previously mentioned, very closely follows Todorov's theory of narrative. However, the fact it is a dream sequence undermines the entire story of the video and we learn in the end that he is still a "Teenage Dirtbag". Hypodiegesis refers to the concept of a 'story within a story'. This is similar to a 'Dream Sequence' in the sense that it is a story within an overall, general narrative. Björk's music video for 'Bachelorette' (K) for example, heavily involves Hypodiegesis as the story appears to repeat itself and there is a clear concept of a 'story within a story.'

           

How does this music video feature resolution?

Like previously mentioned, this music video utilises the proairetic code to construct an archetypal american high school narrative. Almost from the outset we can accurately predict what's going to happen in the end. The disequilibrium initiated at 0:18 is resolved at the prom night when Noelle offers "two tickets to Iron Maiden" and then they go off to dance. He 'gets the girl' and as we've been positioned with him throughout, are pleased to see that. However, the first and last shots, that establish it as a dream sequence, spoils this entire resolution and reveals that it was all in his imagination and the disequilibrium still exists. If you looked at this music video and ignored the first and last shots, it would be an archetypal, resolving music video as it follows the conventions of the typical american high school narrative closely. However, the entire music video can be argued to not feature resolution/ closure as he remains a "teenage dirtbag".  

Roland Barthes - Enigmatic, Symbolic and Proairetic codes.

Roland Barthes (1915-1980) was a French scholar most known for his '5 codes of narrative'. Only 3 however, are relevant to the production of music videos, the Symbolic code, Enigmatic Code and Proairetic code. These codes feature in nearly all media texts - if it's got a narrative, it will have some of these narrative codes.

We will keep them in mind when we are planning our music video to ensure a professional outcome with a strong narrative structure.

1) Enigmatic Code

An Enigmatic code is constructed through leaving the audience confused about what is going to happen. A specific event/ object is presented to the audience without a full reason and the audience seek an explanation/ full resolution.

An example of a enigmatic code in a media text can be seen throughout Series 2 of the popular TV series Breaking Bad. Throughout this series, there are many shots of a damaged pink teddy bear floating in the pool. The audience is confused by this as there is no explanation for it and we haven't seen it before in the show. It is only towards the end of the series where its explanation is revealed and the enigma surrounding it is resolved.

An example of an enigmatic code in a music video can be seen in Arctic Monkey's 'A View from the Afternoon'. This music video features a character playing the drum part of the track in an urban setting. This video features several enigmatic shots that lack an explanation and don't seem to be coherent with the simple narrative of the video and viewers are left asking questions. For instance, shots such as the ones below are examples of the enigmatic code:

Enigmatic shots such as these, often experiment with lighting/ coloration. The music video is entirely shot in black and white apart from the contrasting, unexplored, shot in the bottom right.  The shot in the top left comes at a time of daylight lighting so it stands out and reinforces the unexplained nature of the enigmatic code.

2) Proairetic Code

Barthes' Proairetic code refers to an action/ event that results in  the audience wanting to see and expecting a resolution to. An example within a media text can be seen in Episode 4 of the first Series of Luther. In this episode, Graham Shand (Rob Jarvis) chases a female character into the bathroom in an attempt to presumably murder her. Through close ups, shot-reverse-shot and the clever use of diegetic and non-diegetic sound, tension is dramatically built during this sequence as Shand attempts to break into the bathroom. The directors cross cuts to members of the detective team en route to the house Jarvis' character is in. This is an example of proairetic code because the audience anticipate the police intervening and what to see Shand caught before he gets into the bathroom. In the nick of time the police arrive and arrest the charactr before he gets in - the problem is resolved.

An example of a proairetic code in a music video can be seen in Wheatus' 'Teenage Dirtbag'. In this music video, the audience is positioned with a male character who is portrayed as and treated by his peers as a 'loser' and is often subject to bullying/teasing from other students. We learnt that he is in love with a girl called Noelle but "she doesn't give a damn about" him. Naturally, as we're positioned with this character, we want him to eventually 'get the girl' and we expect this to happen during the narrative. At the end of the video, at the prom night, Noelle presents "two tickets to Iron Maiden" and he goes off with her to dance. This would be a textbook example of a proairetic code because the audience anticipated and sought this resolution which eventually occurred. However, the proairetic code is undermined when we learn he was asleep the whole time and it was just a dream.

3) Symbolic Codes

In media texts, a symbolic code is a character, action or object that symbolizes an exterior meaning. it can be used to contradict, challenge or represent a wider message within a narrative. In a way, it is like a visual metaphor. An example of the use of the symbolic code in a media text can be seen in Alfred Hitchcock's 1958 film "Vertigo". Throughout this film, Hitchcock frequently utilises spirals to portray the dizzy and disorientating symptoms associated with vertigo. In this case, the symbolic code reinforces the overall message of the narrative and represents a common theme within the film.

An example of symbolic codes in music videos can be seen in Alt-J's 'Breezeblocks'. The director Ellis Bahl features a very clever use of reverse footage to construct a linear narrative - but backwards. However, there are key shots throughout the video that still contribute to the construction of a clear plot line. It may not be as easy to follow as a regular music video but the use of slow motion for example provides the audience with the time to figure out what is happening in each shot. In addition, the director uses the symbolic code to vitally aid the establishment of the narrative and characters in this dimly lit and reversed music video. For example, the are a several shots of the characters hands. We see close ups of the male characters hands and close ups of the murdered female characters hand, often in quick succession. We see that the male is wearing a wedding ring and the female character is not. At 0:11, there is a close up of the male characters hand at the point where the musics strong pulse dramatically kicks and the volume increases. The use of this shot at this specific point in the track heightens the importance of this symbolism. This use of the symbolic code help establish the characters to the audience as well as the conflict between them. Through the juxtaposing symbolism, we learn that they are not married and instead that the male character may be married to the other female character in the cupboard. The symbolism used in close ups of the hands reinforces this binary opposition and adds to the sense of conflict between these two characters - constructed as well through the general narrative of the video. This music video illustrates Barthes symbolic code very well as it has been used to contribute to the general narrative and strengthen the audiences interpretation of the characters.

How we could use Enigmatic, Symbolic and Proairetic codes in our final production

Enigmatic

One way we could implement the enigmatic code is through the use of the photo the boy takes off the cork board and carries in his pocket.  Towards the start of our video, the boy unpins one photo from a cork board but the audience doesn't see what it is. Throughout the music video, we will be selective with the shots of the boy looking at this photo in order to keep it hidden from the audience. This will create a mystery and enigma surrounding the photo as the audience are interested in what it is of. At the end of the video, the photo the boy has been carrying with him the whole time is revealed as a photo of the couple by a fence/ bench/ point of interest (not decided yet) at the location they are both now in. 

Symbolic

During our final production, we are planning to implement flashback type shots of the boy and girl visiting places they visited as a couple. For example, the boy is going to walk past a restaurant and it will cut to a shot of him and the girl walking in. This acts as symbolism as it portrays to the audience how things have changed over time and their relationship has deteriorated. Binary opposition between them as individuals and when they were a couple is reinforced as there is a clear cut comparison between when they were in a relationship and now. We will have an identical shot but one will be a flashback, symbolising how their relationship has changed.

Proairetic

From the outset of the video, we want to clearly establish that the girl and boys relationship has ended. However, the reminiscent theme of the video and the text messages the girl is sending will hint at the fact that they could forgive each other and get back together. Naturally the audience expects this issue to be resolved. The song lyrics often mention "a call for your pardon" indicating to the viewers that the video may feature some forgiveness and resolution. The expectation that this disequilibrium will be resolved is a good example of the proairetic code in our own music video.

Narrative Timeline - Planning

Below are some images taken throughout the process of constructing our detailed narrative timeline. 

We took our general plot and discussed/ worked out the points at which everything will happen. Each section was given a start and finish point so we knew what would be happening at each part of the song. This ensured when we came to filming/ editing we had a 'full music video' and there wasn't anything to re-shoot in order to fill in gaps. 

Next Steps: From here, story boarding will become much easier so our next steps is to thoroughly storyboard each scene, shot by shot.

Narrative Technique - Framing Devices

Framing Devices are used in film and television to create a 'story within a story' and establish a new scene in a different location, stemmed from the original setting. In other words "the framing device is a gateway that sets the stage for a deeper journey into story."

Framing devices are very common in film and television, including music videos. At the moment we are unsure if we are definitely or definitely not going to use a framing device in our final production, but if so we believe it could be easily implemented. The cork board full of photos, as previously mentioned throughout the planning posts on this blog, could be utilised as a transition to a new location, perhaps by zooming into the photo and it being the opening freeze frame for a scene.


1) Death Cab for Cutie - 'Grapevine Fires'





This music video is an animated video in a paper/ 2D style. The video very cleverly uses framing devices at the start and dotted throughout the duration of the song. The video begins with a slow zoom into a photograph of the boy on the bike (the framing device). There are other photographs around it and after zooming in, the freeze frame becomes a shot of the boy cycling down the street. Another example of a similar use and implementation of a framing device can be seen at 0:45, where the photo of the brother and his girlfriend comes to life. We could very easily utilise this technique because we are planning to establish a close relationship between the photographs on the cork board and the locations the characters are in. It would be relatively easy to imitate this technique in our video by zooming into a photo and it becoming a moving shot of a character. Although, it may be technically challenging.

2) The Chemical Brothers - 'The Salmon Dance'.


The official music video for The Chemical Brothers' 2007 track 'The Salmon Dance' similarly features a short prologue with a framing device. A boy is woken by faint music and when he investigates he finds the fish in his fish tank singing and making music. The fish tank itself becomes a framing device as the camera zooms in slowly to establish the fish tank as the new setting for the narrative. This music video takes a characters point of view of an object or a setting and by zooming in and literally filling the screen with it, construct a new location for the story to progress. Perhaps we could utilise this technique in our final production. For instance zooming in on a bench a character is looking at and cutting (through zooming in) to a flashback of both characters sitting on it.

3) Blur - 'Coffee and TV'



The framing device featured in the music video for Blur's 'Coffee and TV' is a bit more subtle. Instead of acting as a new location/ setting to help progress the narrative, the framing device in this video simply aids the construction of the storyline. From the offset we know that a boy is missing, due to the advertisement on the milk carton. We then see a framed photograph (the same photograph) beside an unhappy father being comforted by his presumed wife, clearly the boys family. Instead of establishing a 'story within a story' this framing device simply contributes to the progression of the plot and gets the audience up to speed with the storyline immediately. This technique is something we plan to use. Not only do we have the cork board filled with photos of a couple, we discussed potentially using of a couple of framed photos of them in the initial shots of the girls bedroom. This gives the immediate impression to the audience that these characters are/ were in a relationship. Achieving this would prove useful in introducing the characters as well as the storyline of the music video in general.

4) Bjork - 'Bachelorette'.



The music video for Björk's 'Bachelorette' uses a very unconventional narrative. As well as a 'Russian Doll' narrative of 'stories within stories', the video predominantly uses a cyclical narrative because it starts and ends in the same place (a woods). The character discovers a self writing book that becomes a bestseller and she gets her own theatre show. However, it all gets undone and she ends up exactly where she started. During our production meetings, we have discussed using a similar narrative structure to this video. Our initial location is the boys room with the cork board full of photos. At the end of the music video when the two characters are reunited, we are thinking of freezing  the final frame, of them holding hands perhaps, then, this freeze frame becomes a photograph that the audience see on the cork board in the boys bedroom. In Björk's music video, the narrative has developed but it has gone full circle back to the videos first location, similar  to the ideas for our music video.   The music video for 'Bachelorette' also uses a framing device in the shape of the book she finds "buried deep in the ground." This closely dictates the narrative of the video as the audiences sees the book writing itself and the plot following what it says. For instance, it writes: "I then got on the train" and it then cuts to the character on the train. We could use a similar technique of objects dictating the direction of the narrative. For instance, the audience could see a photograph of a bench on the cork board and then we cut to a character interacting/ walking past this bench. 

Inter-textual inspiration during our planning

Throughout our initial planning process we kept in mind inspiring and similar texts to ensure we include suitable inter textual references and establish our final productoin firmly within the genre .  Below are some examples of our inter textual inspiration:

1) R.E.M - At My Most Beautiful



The music video for R.E.M's 1998 track 'At My Most Beautiful' features a combination of narrative and performance. The video cross cuts between band members and a women walking to audition for the cello part of the song. She walks through a busy urban setting often getting knocked over or interrupted. nevertheless, she continues walking, presenting a clear positive message. Through the camera work, the audience get a sense that the band members are waiting for this women to arrive. The creation of a relationship between two characters through cross cutting and a contrasting sense of movement is an interesting narrative technique that we could certainly use during our music video.

2) Firehorse - 'Bloodstream'.
Exemplar student Joe Murray's music video


What we liked about this video is how it uses a strong sense of movement and establishes the character. They have used close ups of her step by step routine to constructs a clear narrative and introduce the character. We plan to shoot a similar opening in our music video to create a confident dual narrative and reveal the two characters to the audience. Another aspect of this music video we took inspiration from is where the characters visit similar locations after time. At 0:49, the couple go into the restaurant compared to walking straight past at 1:45. We believe we could utilise this technique in our music video to generate a sense of change over time and reflection for the couple. At the moment, we are thinking that one of the characters could walk past a location and reminisce about visiting it with their partner. Then, we could cut to them both visiting the location in a flashback. If done successfully, like this music video above has, we believe the audience will get a good indication that the couples relationship has deteriorated over time.

3) Submarine (2010) - Opening scene



The opening scene from Richard Ayoades BAFTA nominated film 'Submarine' has inspired our project through how it introduces a character and specifically, the bedroom location. Our opening shots will be in the bedrooms of each character and so the first appearance of each location is crucial in establishing the characters and narratives. The slow pan around the room, from 0:37 - 0:58, puts the audience in the position of the camera as well as allowing them to get a larger picture of where this scene is set, as if they were looking around.

4) Strangers on a Train (1951) - Alfred Hitchcock


During the planning for our final production, we have taken great inspiration from one of Hitchcocks finest films. In the opening to this film, we are introduced to two characters but we only see their bottom half or their feet. Throughout the opening, each character maintains a single, consistent direction of travel, achieved by the directors not breaking their individual 180-rules. This technique is defniitely something we wish to incooperate into our music video. It may be difficult to maintain it for the entirety of the track, but certainly during the inital scenes when the characters are still being establshed. We wish to utilise this technique as it effectively associates the characters with the audiences as well as creating a sense of parrell narratives and binary opposition. With both characters walking in a clear different direction, like in Strangers on a Train, we believe the audience will recognise their opposition. On top of this, the notion that they are both travelling towards each other will be implied. When the characters leave their house and during montages of them walking, we plan to implement this technique as frequently as possible.

5) Radiohead - 'Burn the Wtitch'



The music video for Radiohead's track 'Burn the Witch' features an prologue and epilogue of a bird chirping. The bird is on its own and all we can hear is diegetic sound. This is a good way to establish a setting in a music video and something we plan to use in the very beginning of our video.

6) Edgar Wright - Hot Fuzz

During  the begging scenes of 'Hot Fuzz' (2007), there is a travel montage featuring the main character Nicholas Angel (Simon Pegg). DUring this montage, the director Edgar Wright uses an interesting shot that we are planning to incooperate in our final production. The shot is a close up of the character with their head looking out the window. We are looking to use this when the female character is on the bus. The shot portrays reflection and emotes unhappiness.

7) Texting in film

In our final production, we plan to incoperate some element of texting between the two characters. We believe this would help further establish the relationship (or break down of) between the boy and the girl. However, portraying to the audience that they are texting/ what a text is saying is tricky. At the moment we are thinking of using some special effects to get the message to pop up on the screen. This technique is commonly used in film and television as it elminates the use of a cheesy, cliched over the shoulder shot/ close up of the screen. Using this technique to show text messages doesnt interupt the natural flow and movement of the character. Shows such as 'Sherlock' and 'House of Cards' use this tecnhique which we have taken great inspiration from during our production process.

                              House of Cards                                                             Sherlock

8) The Oh Hello's - 'Like the Dawn'
 Exemplar students work: Megan Edwards & Elizabeth Adcock



Another example of students previous music videos that we have taken great inspiration from during our planning. The video confidently establishs the location and character in the opening minute or so, something we need to achieve effectively. Furthermore, the bedroom location is presented in a similar fashion to what we aim to do. The audiences first meets the character in a very similar way to what how we're planning, brushing her hair in front of a mirror perhaps. Another aspect of inspiration we've drawn from this music video is how the students have used photgraphs of the girl and a partner. This gives a subtle indication that the girl is/was in a relationship and definitely something we seek to establish through the use of the cork board filled with photos. Also, this music video features a similar sense of travel and movement in natural locations so throughout the planning process, close reference will be made back to this video to act as inspiration for the montage shots of the characters walking alone in natural locations.